Sunbelt Software Enhances Anti-Spyware Protection

Sunbelt Software released CounterSpy 2.0 with a new automatic deployment, kernel-level protection and other features.

Security vendor Sunbelt Software has armed an upgraded version of its CounterSpy Enterprise product with a number of enhancements to protect users from threats, including an automatic deployment feature.
CounterSpy Enterprise 2.0 allows administrators at the policy level to specify any combination of machine lists, IP ranges, IP subnets, IP addresses and Active Directory Organizational Units to be resolved and deployed automatically. The traditional methods of deployment, such as console push and MSI packages, are still included, officials at the company, located in Clearwater, Fla., said.

Deploying security manually when new machines are added to the active directory can be problematic in large enterprises, said Greg Kras, Sunbelts vice president of product management.

"Thats the biggest problem with a lot of security products," he said in an interview with eWEEK. "You find out real quick who doesnt have [the proper security tools] when you have a virus."
Read more here about Sunbelt tracking a DIY Trojan builder program.
In addition, agents can now connect to Sunbelt Softwares servers over the Web to get definition updates if their CounterSpy Enterprise server is unreachable. Between 10,000 and 40,000 agents can run on a server without having to do much in the way of customizationa number several times greater than what could have been done easily with the previous version of CounterSpy Enterprise, Kras said.
The new version of CounterSpy Enterprise also includes several new features, including the companys Virus Intrusion Protection Remediation Engine, kernel-level Active Protection, automatic agent deployment and support for Windows Vista. The kernel-level component completely replaces CounterSpy Enterprises Active Protection, and includes signature, behavioral and heuristic-based, real-time blocking of threats. Additionally, administrators can create their own custom list of allowed and denied applications, Sunbelt officials said.
CounterSpy Enterprise 2.0 also includes FirstScan, a new feature that runs at the systems boot time and bypasses the Windows operating system to directly scan certain parts of the hard drive for malware.
"CounterSpy Enterprise version 2.0 delivers protection against malware using a hybrid technology that merges the system cleaning properties of traditional anti-spyware products with the efficiency of powerful anti-virus-based technology," said Alex Eckelberry, president of Sunbelt Software, in a statement. "With a definition database that includes over 750,000 threat traces, continued enterprise enhancements, and our new Active Protection technology, enterprise customers will find that CounterSpy Enterprise delivers the most powerful enterprise anti-spyware product available."
Upgrading to CounterSpy Enterprise 2.0 is free for all existing customers of CounterSpy Enterprise currently under a maintenance plan. New customers can purchase CounterSpy Enterprise on a per machine basis at a cost of $155 for five machines. There is a sliding scale discount based on the number of machines, company officials said.
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